Article of footwear



1951 R. D. BLAIR 2,994,972

ARTICLE OF FOOTWEAR Filed June 14, 1960 IN VEN TOR.

Roy B. B AIR ATTY:

2,994,972 ARTICLE OF FOOTWEAR Roy D. Blair, Watertown, Mass, assignor to The B. F. Goodrich Company, New York, N.Y., a corporation of New York Filed June 14, 1960, Ser. No. 36,073 4 Claims. (Cl. 362.5)

This invention relates to an article of footwear and has particular reference to an Oxford-style shoe particularly adapted for sports and the like and having a tightly fitting heel area in order to hold the shoe onto the foot more firmly.

A common objection to Oxford-style shoes intended to be worn for use in sports has been the ease with which the heel of the shoe slips off of the foot of the wearer. The accidental stepping on the heel of conventional Oxford-style shoes by another participant in a sport or even a sudden turn often is sufficient to cause the heel of the shoe to slide down and off the back of the foot. Oxford-style sport shoes of conventional manufacture are designed to be laced only over the instep of the foot and to be tied at the top of the shoe. When the shoe is laced in this manner, the areas of the shoe adjacent the ankle and heel, being somewhat removed from the immediate area along which the shoe is laced, are held in place much less snugly than those areas of the shoe in the proximity of the instep. The heel portion of the shoe, therefore, is susceptible to being accidentally disengaged from the foot.

The present invention greatly minimizes the danger of the heel of the Oxford-style shoes slipping olf of or being accidentally pulled off of the foot by providing a construction whereby the areas of the shoe adjacent the ankle and heel of the foot are pulled forward when the shoe is laced and fitted more tightly around the heel. In accordance with this invention the quarter portions of the upper of the shoe are hinged to the instep areas or vamp of the shoe and are provided with one or more eyelets on each side of the shoe through which the lace for lacing up the instep of the shoe is threaded.

Reference to the appended drawings and to the description of the specific embodiment of the invention shown in the drawings will facilitate an understanding of the invention.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of a shoe within the purview ofdthis invention showing the shoe laced but untied; an

FIG. 2 is a side elevation view of the shoe of FIG. 1 showing the shoe tightly laced and tied whereby the heel of the shoe is pulled forward to provide a snug fit at the heel and around the ankle of the wearer.

Referring to the embodiment of this invention shown in the drawings which depict an Oxford-style canvas sport shoe, shoe comprises an upper and a sole assembly. The sole assembly is of conventional construction and includes an insole 12, a midsole (not shown) and an outsole (not shown). The upper of the shoe includes quarter sections 13 and 14 which are 'stitcthed to a backstay 15, instep sections 16 and 17 and a unitary tongue and toe section 18. Instep sections '16 and 17 are stitched to the tongue and toe section 18 along their forward margins in a conventional manner, as shown in the drawings, and are attached at their rear margins to quarter sections 13 and 14 in a unique hinge-type manner as will be explained in greater detail hereinafter.

Each instep section (16 and 17) is provided with an eyelet stay 19, 19 disposed along the upper margin of the instep section which contains a sufficient number of eyelets 20, 20 to enable the shoe to be laced snugly over the instep of the foot. The shoe also is provided Patented Aug. 8, 1961 ice I 2 with a toe cap 21, a heel counter 22 and a foxing strip 23 as is customary in this type of footwear.

In accordance with this invention, the quarter sections of the shoe are attached to the instep sections or vamp of the shoe by a hinge-type construction, and are provided each wtih one or more eyelets in the upper forward corner of the quarter section through which the lace used for lacing the shoe over the instep of the foot is threaded. By employing this construction, the heel area of the shoe upper can be caused to be pulled snugly against the heel of the wearer when the shoe is laced tight, and permits a snugger fit to be obtained in the ankle and heel regions lessening the danger of the shoe being accidentally pulled off at the heel. As shown clearly in FIG. 2, the hingetype joining of quarter sections 13 and 14 to instep sections 16 and 17 is obtained by stitching together the forward margin of the quarter section to the rear margin of the instep section along a zone which extends from the sole only part way up the forward margin of the quarter. The rows of stitching 24, 24 which fasten quarter sections 13 and 14 to their respective instep section (16 or 17 preferably are situated beneath the ankle bone of the foot and extend from the sole of the shoe about A to /2 the distance along the distance along the forward margin of the quarter sections 13 and 14 so that the quarter section will be securely joined to its respective instep section. Each quarter section 13 and 14 is provided with at least one eyelet 25, 25 located in the upper forward corner of the quarter section, preferably just forward of the ankle bone, through which the shoe lace 26 is threaded as will be described more fully hereinafter. Preferably the forward edge of each quarter section (13 and 14) projects forwardly as it extends upwardly above the zone along which the quarter section is secured to the instep section to form a forwardly extending eyelet flap 27 at the upper forward corner of the quarter section which overlies the instep section and in which eyelet 25 is located.

The shoe is laced over the instep by threading lace 26 through eyelets 2t 20 in the usual manner until the lace is passed through the eyelets 20a and Ztlb horizontally adjacent to the eyelets 25, 25 in the quarer sections of the shoe, eyelets 20a and 20b usually being either the sec- 0nd or the third eyelet from the top in their respective eyelet stay. The lace 26 then is threaded through the eyelets 25, 25 situated in flaps 27, 27 of the quarter sections of the shoe and back through eyelets 20a and 20b. Lacing of the shoe then is completed in the customary manner. The double thickness of lace going through eyelets 20a and 2% offers suflicient friction to hold the hinged quarters firmly in place until the lace is finally secured at the top of the shoe. The above-described manner of lacing the shoe is clearly shown in the drawings. It 'Will be appreciated that, when the shoe is put on and the lace 26 is pulled tight, the construction of the shoe and the manner in which it is laced causes a forward pull on flaps 27, 27 of the quarter sections 16 and 17 which results in the heel and ankle areas of the upper of the shoe being pulled snugly against the foot of the wearer. In thi manner, the shoe is more snugly bound to the foot than if merely conventional instep lacing is employed and the danger of the shoe being accidentally pulled off of the foot during use essentially is eliminated. While the specific illustration of the invention involves a so-called canvas shoe, it is apparent that the construction may be utilized in Oxford-style shoes irrespective of the materials from which the upper is formed. For example, the construction may be used in Oxford-style shoes where the upper of the shoe is fabricated of leather. It will be understood that obvious modifications and variations of this invention may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. An Oxford-style shoe comprising an upper and a sole assembly, said upper including quarter sections, instep sections and a tongue and toe section, the forward margin of one said quarter section being attached to the rear margin of the said instep section with which it is associated along a zone located in the general region beneath the ankle bone of the foot and extending upwardly from the sole part way along the forward margin of the quarter section, the upper reaches of the forward margin of the quarter section being unattached to the rear margin of the instep section, the other said quarter section being attached to the other said instep section-in like manner, each said instep section including an eyelet stay along the upper margin of the instep section which has eyelets therein to permit the shoe to be laced over the instep of the foot, each said quarter section having an eyelet located in the upper forward corner area thereof and essentially horizontally adjacent to one of the said eyelets located along the upper margin of the instep section with which the quarter section is associated whereby a shoe lace can be threaded through the eyelets in the instep sections until it has been passed through the eyelets which are essentially horizontally adjacent the eyelets in the quarter sections of the shoe, through the eyelets in the quarter sections of the shoe, back through the said eyelets in the instep sections which are essentially horizontally adjacent the eyelets in the quarter sections of the shoe and through the remaining eyelets in the instep sections of the shoe through which the shoe lace had not previously been passed so that the quarter sections of the shoe as well as the instep sections of the shoe can be secured snugly to the foot.

2. An Oxford-style shoe comprising an upper and a sole assembly, said upper including quarter sections, instep sections and a tongue and toe section, the forward margin of one said quarter section being attached to the rear margin of the said instep section with which it is associated along a zone located in the general region beneath the ankle bone of the foot and extending upwardly from the sole about M1 to /2 the distance along the forward margin of the quarter section, the upper reaches of the forward margin of the quarter section being unattached to the rear margin of the instep section, the other said quarter section being attached to the other said instep section in like manner, each said instep section including an eyelet stay along the upper margin of the instep section which has eyelets therein to permit the shoe to be laced over the instep of the foot, each said quarter section having an eyelet located in the upper forward corner area thereof and essentially horizontally adjacent to one of the said eyelets located along the upper margin of the instep section with which the quarter section is associated whereby a shoe lace can he threaded through the eyelets in the instep sections until it has been passed through the eyelets which are essentially horizontally adjacent the eyelets in the quarter sections of the shoe, through the eyelets in the quarter sections of the shoe, back through the said eyelets in the instep sections which are essentially horizontally adjacent the eyelets in the quarter sections of the shoe and through the remaining eyelets in the instep sections of the shoe through which the shoe lace had not previously been passed so that the quarter sections of the shoe as well as the instep sections of the lace can be secured snugly to the foot.

3. An Oxford-style shoe comprising an upper and a sole assembly, said upper including quarter sections, instep sections and a tongue and toe section, the forward margin of one said quarter section being attached to the rear margin of the said instep section with which it is associated along a zone located in the general region beneath the ankle bone of the foot and extending upwardly from the sole part way along the forward margin of the quarter section, the upper reaches of the forward margin of the quarter section being unattached to the rear margin of the instep section, the other said quarter section being attached to the other said instep section in like manner, each said instep section including an eyelet stay along the upper margin of the instep section which has eyelets therein to permit the shoe to be laced over the instep of the foot, the margin of each said quarter section projecting forwardly as it extends upwardly above said zone along which the quarter section is secured to the instep section to provide a forwardly extending eyelet flap at the upper forward corner of each quarter section in which is located an eyelet whereby a shoe lace can be threadeod through the eyelets which are essentially horizontally adjacent the eyelets in the quarter sections of the shoe, through the eyelets in the quarter sections of the shoe, back essentially horizontally adjacent the eyelets in the quarter sections of the shoe and through the remaining eyelets in the instep sections of the shoe through which the shoe lace had not previously been passed so that the quarter sections of the shoe as well as the instep sections of the shoe can be secured snugly to the foot.

4. An Oxford-style shoe comprising an upper and a sole assembly, said upper including quarter sections, instep sections and a tongue and toe section, the forward margin of one said quarter section being attached to the rear margin of the said instep section with which it is associated along a zone located in the general region beneath the ankle bone of the foot and extending upwardly from the sole about A to /2 the distance along the forward margin of the quarter section, the upper reaches of the forward margin of the quarter section being unattached to the rear margin of the instep section, the other said quarter section being attached to the other said instep section in like manner, each said instep section including an eyelet stay along the upper margin of the instep section which has eyelets therein to permit the shoe to be laced over the instep of the foot, the margin of each said quarter section projecting forwardly as it extends upwardly above said zone along which the quarter section is secured to the instep section to provide a forwardly extending eyelet flap at the upper forward corner of each quarter section in which is located an eyelet whereby a shoe lace can be threaded through the eyelets which are essentially horizontally adjacent the eyelets in the quarter sections of the shoe,

through the eyelets in the quarter sections of the shoe, back through the said eyelets in the instep sections which are essentially horizontally adjacent the eyelets inthe quarter sections of the shoe and through the remaining eyelets in the instep sections of the shoe through which the shoe lace hadnot previously been passed so that the quarter sections of the shoe as well as the instep sections of the shoe can be secured snugly to the foot.

References Cited in the, file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS I Swanstrom Feb. '2, 1926 1,779,677 -Mudge Oct. 28, 193C 2,452,502 Tarbox Oct. 26, 1948 2,483,525 Brust Oct. 4, 1945 2,487,227 Eberle Nov. 8, 1949 2,926,434 r Morgan; Mar. 1, 196C 5 FOREIGN PATENTS 593,508 Great Britain June 8, 1933 

